1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to computer networks, and more particularly provides a system and method for globally and securely accessing unified information in a computer network.
2. Description of the Background Art
The internet currently interconnects about 100,000 computer networks and several million computers. Each of these computers stores numerous application programs for providing numerous services, such as generating, sending and receiving e-mail, accessing World Wide Web sites, generating and receiving facsimile documents, storing and retrieving data, etc.
A roaming user, i.e., a user who travels and accesses a workstation remotely, is faced with several problems. Program designers have developed communication techniques for enabling the roaming user to establish a communications link and to download needed information and needed service application programs from the remote workstation to a local computer. Using these techniques, the roaming user can manipulate the data on the remote workstation and, when finished, can upload the manipulated data back from the remote workstation to the local computer. However, slow computers and slow communication channels make downloading large files and programs a time-consuming process. Further, downloading files and programs across insecure channels severely threatens the integrity and confidentiality of the downloaded data.
Data consistency is also a significant concern for the roaming user. For example, when maintaining multiple independently modifiable copies of a document, a user risks using an outdated version. By the time the user notices an inconsistency, interparty miscommunication or data loss may have already resulted. The user must then spend more time attempting to reconcile the inconsistent versions and addressing any miscommunications.
The problem of data inconsistency is exacerbated when multiple copies of a document are maintained at different network locations. For example, due to network security systems such as conventional firewall technology, a user may have access only to a particular one of these network locations. Without access to the other sites, the user cannot confirm that the version on the accessible site is the most recent draft.
Data consistency problems may also arise when using application programs from different vendors. For example, the Netscape Navigatorm web engine and the Internet Explorerm web engine each store bookmarks for quick reference to interesting web sites. However, since each web engine uses different formats and stores bookmarks in different files, the bookmarks are not interchangeable. In addition, one web engine may store a needed bookmark, and the other may not. A user who, for example, runs the Internet Explorer™ web engine at home and runs the Netscape Navigator™ web engine at work risks having inconsistent bookmarks at each location.
Therefore, a system and method are needed to enable multiple users to access computer services remotely without consuming excessive user time, without severely threatening the integrity and confidentiality of the data, and without compromising data consistency.